Hi everyone, i am trying to make my own organic mix thanks to the poster "in the garden" as she made it sound so easy therefore i am trying to source a few things but as i am from the UK and i am having issues. i was thinking 1/3 worm castings 1/3 peat moss 1/3 perlite Kelp meal Dolomite lime Epsom salts Rock dust Alfafa meal some sort of mycorrhiza white shark or something from the garden center I can source things like blood meal,bone meal and such but struggling with a dry organic fertiliser. Wanting to keep simple as possible
Ditch the epsom salt and add-in neem meal. You could even leave out alfalfa meal as well, but there's nothing wrong with it being in there.
I'm not familiar with epsom salts or their intended use, and I'm far from an expert, but I'd say that is a sufficient mix. If you are aiming for a no-till however, I'd advise against perlite, as over time it will rise to the top of the container - Buying BBQ lava rock and smashing it down with a hammer has been the most cost efficient option that I have found so far, as I have yet to find anywhere locally that even knows what pumice/lava rock as an aeration amendment is in this country. Yarrow, Nettle and rabbit manure can all easily be acquired for free if you live anywhere other than central London and you have the time/inclination to forage it. I understand what a pain it can be to find certain things in the UK, let alone getting it for a reasonable price...
I do appreciate all the help so thanks for the replies however i have got nearly all the products in my basket so to speak apart from the dry organic fertilizer. I am keeping this as simple as poss as it is a big investment for me as the product purpose is personal. I am up to 100pounds already. If anybody knows what dry organic fert to buy in the uk to put in my mix Easy Organic Soil Mix for Beginners this is the thread i am following by inthegarden. i intend to add further amendments in later use and build the mix as i go along
id go with quality compost over worm castings. u really dont need epsom salts, and over applying can harm your plants. i dont use dry fert so cant help you there. but if you can get neem meal/cake, any crustacean meal and malted barely along with the kelp and compost you wont need any dry ferts, and you will have a superior mix. peat aeration compost (quality is important) neem meal crustacean meal (crab, shrimp, lobster) kelp meal rock dust. malted barely (any beer brewing shop) thats all you need.
Thanks scoob, with that info i am about to take as trip down to the local horse riding stables. Not sure what makes for a good compost but i should imagine if it looks like allmix i should be good to go. Any tips
stay away from compost that has lots of wood shavings and/or sticks. and anything with the words bio waste or bio solids good compost should smell like aged manure and/or earthy, if it smells off or like sewage stay away. if its locally made ask what in it.
nice one thanks, i am getting my shit together(no pun intended)and shall put it together as follows organic compost / worm casting =1/3 peat = 1/3 perlite 1/3 i heard your warning but its easily available and cheap as. Amendments are Rock dust dolomite lime maxicrop seaweed organic fertilizer called Q4+ mycorrhizal fungi called rootgrow will this work?
e Epson salt is magnesium sulfate not salt. I use on every grow with excellent results it feeds the microbes sulfur and the mag is ready to use by the plant it doesn't have to be converted. Neem is good for NPK I use it too but it is low in mag and sulfur. Talk to any rose grower about Epson salts and big beautiful flowers.
Magnesium sulfate is, by definition, a salt; it is formed by the neutralization reaction between an acid, sulfuric, with a base, magnesium oxide. There is sulfur present in seaweed, peat moss, and most general garden fertilizers. Magnesium is in the dolomitic lime. Since epsom salt is immediately available, it's better used situationally rather than putting into your potting mix.
"The advantage of magnesium sulfate over other magnesium soil amendments (such as dolomitic lime) is its high solubility, which also allows the option of foliar feeding. Solutions of magnesium sulfate are also nearly neutral, as compared to alkaline salts of magnesium, as found in limestone; therefore, the use of magnesium sulfate as a magnesium source for soil does not significantly change the soil pH" ( wiki) When mixed with soil it is absorbed into the peat, compost and castings etc so unless one over waters it stays in the mix until needed.
Your first mix was better and add crab meal and rock phosphate , if you took the castings part and made it 1/3 castings 1/3 compost 1/3 humus it would cover all the nutrient needs of the plants. A young plant can't use a lot of N it needs P K so mixing in fertilizer seems a waste until you have a good root system and the plant has enough foliage to use it then top dressing with bat guano or a complete fert and water it in.
compost and castings are humus...bat guano takes years to break down, use it if you have it but i wouldnt buy any. besides its not sustainable. leave the NPK mindset for the hydro guys. epsom salts: not needed. its good to have around to use as foliar if you ever have a need (i still have a unopened box my no-till soil is on its 3rd round and i see absolutely no sign of deficiency) waktoo put it nicely in the no-till thread: IIRC spagnum already has myco fungi so you can drop that. but if you do get it you dont want to mix it in the soil, just a teaspoon in the hole when you transplant is all you need (it needs direct contact with roots to infect) i wouldnt get rock phosphate. stuff can be radioactive and is not needed. can you not source some kind of crustacean meal and neem meal? how about oyster shell flower (used as bird feed)? also you should add 2 cups of ground up malted barely to your mix (find in home brew shops)
Hi fellas sorry been away with work. i hear ya scoob and thanks i can drop the rock dust., the only thing i can get is crab meal and crushed roasted barley. I can find oyster shell grit for chickens i think. I would love to drop the fert however everything in my mix is a slow release fert and i fear would not be ready to use this side of 2020 unless this bacteria thing works fast. i just want to plant and water
Just had a thought I am limited to a 20litre pot. I see people are using a 20 gallon pot. Wtf. I cannot fit them in my grow room unless I do 1 plant per light. I have 2 rooms one for veg and one for flower so I don't see myself moving a 20 gallon easily. Can no till be done in 20 litre 5 gallon pot
you want to keep rock dust, its the rock phosphate i would drop. i used my soil as soon as it was mixed, did not use any fertilizers. the only time you would need to wait is if you add something hot like alfalfa that would heat up the soil for a week or two and would burn your plants. soil is fertile as soon as its mixed basically. israel you can do with a 5gallon but how many pots are you planing? if more then 1 id go with a single pot, the biggest you can fit in the grow area. at least go with 10gallon imo, you want a big soil volume to take full benefit. if you really need to move bigger pots you can place them on casters.